The One That Means The Most To You
by seemeinacrown
Summary: Disclaimer: might need to get some tissues later on. Chekov finally gets the girl of his dreams, they get hitched...but space isn't kind to anybody, and newlyweds certainly aren't any exception. Plot starts off a little thin, but it'll get better (if everything goes according to plan). Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: Hey all :) I've been focusing on Sherlock lately and had basically resigned to the fact that I would never be able to write about anything else when I remembered an idea I had a few weeks ago after watching "Star Trek: Into Darkness." (A most excellent and fangirl-inducing movie, I assure you. But that's another story.) And since finals are done now (big sign of relief) I figured I could shamelessly devote my time to writing something longer without too much regret. So, with that being said, enjoy! And as always, reviews are always appreciated :). And, also as always, I definitely don't own "Star Trek" or any of its characters, and it's a good thing I don't because I would probably mess it all up. **

"Oi! Captain!" Kirk turned to see Scotty strolling towards him, a mildly aggravated expression on his face.

"Scotty. Whatcha need?" He had to hold back a smile at the engineer's face.

"Would you _mind_ telling your little ensign over there to stop snoggin' with his girlfriend down underneath my pipes, would ya?" He gestured towards Chekov, who looked guiltily up from his dinner at a nearby table and hurriedly began eating again.

"Uh, will do, Scotty. Thanks for the information." Kirk nodded stiffly at Scotty, still suppressing the urge to grin. The engineer nodded back and walked away, huffing in anger and muttering, "Can't turn around without them just poppin' up, kids're all over each other, they are."

Spinning on his heel, Kirk walked immediately over to Chekov and raised an eyebrow at him as they met eyes.

"So, Chekov." Kirk slid into an empty seat across from the boy. The rest of the table was empty.

"Yes…Captain?"

Kirk grinned now, but it was a teasing smile, not a malicious one. "So Scotty over there tells me you've got a lady friend. Care to explain?" Chekov turned a violent shade of red, but didn't break eye contact with the captain.

"Well…"

"Yes?" Kirk looked expectantly at the boy.

"Yes, I have a girlfriend, you could say."

"Tell me about her."

"Uh…excuse me, Captain?" The ensign looked surprised.

"Tell me about her! What's she like, what's her name, do I know her, how'd you meet her; stuff like that."

"Well…her name is Maddy…she is from earth, like you—New York—she is in engineering—very smart, very smart girl-," he smiled sweetly to himself at that. "Beautiful…yeah."

"Anything else?"

Chekov smiled inquisitively. "No, Captain…unless you wanted to know something else?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just going to ask a little more about the 'snogging' going on down under the ship?"

Chekov seemed to search his captain's eyes for any malice, and upon finding none, said, "Yes, we have…a few times…" He sighed. "I'm sorry, Captain, I know it's unprofessional, I shouldn't do it, but-."

"Chekov, Chekov." Kirk reached across the table and clapped the boy's shoulder, giving him a warm but pointed look. "It's fine. I understand."

"Really?"

Kirk laughed. "Yes, of course. Just…try not to do it while Scotty's on the watch, alright? Or at least don't get caught down there. I wouldn't wish his wrath on anybody, especially you, and if he finds you two one more time we're all gonna get it."

The ensign smiled back. "Yes. Thank you, Captain, thank you."

"No problem. If anybody understands wanting women, it's probably me." They sat in silence for a moment. "And if your relationship gets any more serious—don't look at me like that Chekov, you know what I mean—let me know. At a certain point some paperwork's gotta be done."

Chekov nodded. "Yes, Captain."

"And give me some of those fries, Chekov, and that's an order. I'm starving."

"Yes, Captain."


	2. Chapter 2

"Captain?"

Kirk twirled around, recognizing his young ensign's Russian accent. "Chekov! What's up?"

"I—I have a question," the young boy stuttered, shifting on his feet.

"Yeah, sure." Kirk looking expectantly at Chekov, who shifted himself around a bit more.

"Well, Captain, if it's ok…not here, exactly, I would prefer..."

"Oh! Yeah, of course, in private, Chekov. Here," Kirk ushered him over to a more secluded and empty corner of the hallway. "Alright?"

"Yes, thank you, Captain." They were silent until the ensign seemed to realize it was still on him to speak. "Well, Captain, you remember you asked me to, uh, inform you if my relationship, with that girl, Maddy, got more, uh, serious?"

"Yes, I do."

"Captain…well…we'd like to be married."

Kirk beamed, not sure himself why he was so unexpectedly happy for the young boy. "Chekov, that's great." He clapped him on the shoulders. "That's great."

"Thank you, Captain." Chekov looked physically relieved of a huge burden, and sighed.

"Well of course. We'll have to get the paperwork and all, and then—well, you're going to have to decide if you want to have the wedding on the ship or wait 'til we get planetside—but that all in time. Now, should we go tell the crew? If that's alright, of course."

He seemed hesitant for a moment, but then Chekov nodded and smiled slightly. "Yes, that's ok with me. And I doubt Maddy would object."

Taking Chekov by the shoulder again, Kirk guided him to the bridge, still smiling like a madman. He felt a sort of fatherly responsibility for the boy now, which surprised him, seeing as he was only about ten years older than him.

Bursting into the bridge, Kirk looked around only momentarily before announcing gleefully, "Guys, Chekov is getting married." Everyone turned to look at the red faced and timidly smiling boy and his captain. Uhura was the first to speak.

"Congratulations." She walked over and hugged him before taking his upper arms and smiling warmly. "I am _so_ happy for you." She walked back over to her station as others came up and offered handshakes and congratulations, all the while Kirk supervising proudly. Once the line diminished, Kirk took Chekov back out, speaking to him on the way.

"I'm off shift now, so if you want we can get started on that paperwork right away, unless you had other plans."

"No, no, Captain. I am off shift too, sir. But that, that sounds greats. Thank you so much, Captain."

Kirk grinned again. "Chekov, it's not a problem. Congratulations again."

**Author's Note: So, sorry that was so short guys. I decided I'd try and tell this story in little snippets rather than big huge chunks (which **_**may**_** be due to the fact that I think I'm better at little snippets than long pieces). Let me know what you think! Thank you so much for the reviews so far. :) There's more to come, I promise, and don't worry, I haven't forgotten about my other stories. Happy summer!**


	3. Chapter 3

"Uhura," Spock called softly, knocking on the lieutenant's door.

No response.

"Uhura?" He tapped a little harder, and suddenly the door slid open, Uhura standing with a weak smile on her face.

"Sorry. Hi, Spock." She turned around and walked back into her room without her usual kiss of greeting, and Spock followed, his hands behind his back.

"Nyota?"

"Yes, Spock." She didn't turn around, just kept folding what few clothing items she had on a chair.

"What is wrong?"

"What do you mean?" Still she didn't turn around, so he walked over and gently spun her towards him.

"You have been acting strangely lately, and I am inquiring as to why." He gently brushed some of her hair back.

She sighed and seemed almost inclined to answer before walking away. "It's nothing, Spock. I'm fine."

"Nyota…you are clearly not 'fine.'"

"How would you know?" She challenged, turning around suddenly. "You don't have emotions anyway, how can you know if mine are off or not?"

Spock stood still, thinking, his eyes locked with Uhura's. She sighed again. "I'm sorry Spock, I shouldn't have said that. I know you feel."

"What's wrong, Nyota?"

After a silence, she finally answered. "I'm jealous, Spock." She went hurriedly back to pickup up the room, which was really more rearranging things since it was already immaculate.

Spock's eyebrows furrowed. "Of whom, may I ask?"

"Chekov."

Spock's eyebrows immediately assumed the opposite extreme of their previous position. "What?"

"Chekov, our ensign, and his little girlfriend Maddy," Uhura repeated, hardly keeping any emotion out of her voice now.

Spock considered a reply. "Why would you be jealous of Ensign Chekov? I've hardly made any romantic advances towards him-."

"Very funny, Spock." Uhura practically spat the words out at him.

"Well if that is not the case, then I am puzzled as to why you would be envious of him-."

"Because he's getting married, Spock." She shot a pointed look at him and sat down in a chair, her arms folded.

"And you would expect a similar proposal in your own relationship."

"Oh, really? You think so."

"Nyota, a marriage is a…serious commitment, in your culture and even more so in mine. Making such a commitment requires a large amount of-."

"You don't think I know that?!" Spock remained still. "Spock, we have been together for four years—_four years_—and we haven't even _talked_ about marriage yet. And here's this little boy, twenty years old, just meets this girl, and they're getting _married_? How am I supposed to feel?"

"Nyota, I can assure you that I do feel greatly for you, and I was under the assumption that you knew that for yourself."

"Yes, I know Spock, I know. I know you love me, I know you like me, but how much? _Four years_, Spock, four years, and we're still just in a little relationship. If you feel so strongly, why don't you marry me?"

"Nyota…" Spock paused to consider his next words. "If you are perfectly aware of my feelings towards you, it would then follow that you are sure of the stability and security of out relationship."

"So?"

"Why is an advance of marriage needed when I would feel the same for you after the ceremony as I do now? I see it unnecessary."

"Spock, it's not about the marriage, and of course it's not going to magically make our relationship better-."

"Then what is it?"

"It's the _commitment_, Spock, the commitment."

"Nyota, you know that I am completely committed to you and our relationship-."

"Then why can't we just get married?! Why can't we? Spock, I know you don't get it, but—why do you think your parents got married? Mine? Of course they loved each other like we do now, of course they were already committed to each other like we are now, so why did they get married? Because they loved each other, Spock! Yes, it doesn't make sense, yes, it might seem unnecessary, but…it's…it's just something that shows, Spock, shows that you love me enough to make you mine for the rest of my life. We're committed now, yeah, but in two years, three years, ten, maybe you won't feel the same way, maybe I won't. And if we're still just in a relationship like we are now, there will be nothing stopping either one of us from just walking away and finding someone else if that happens. But Spock, if we get married…it's just another way of assuring each other that we are committed to each other, totally, for life." Spock didn't give an immediate response.

"And what about when we want to have kids, Spock, whenever that comes?" Uhura continued, unable to stop now that she had started. "Do you think we'll be ok if we just have them illegitimately? No, Spock, we won't. They'll need married parents, they'll need stability, they'll need an example, they'll need a guarantee, just like I do, like you do, that we're going to be together forever, and nothing is going to change that."

Spock started at Uhura as she huffed, breathing hard from her monologue, and still as she looked away uncomfortably under his steady and unreadable gaze.

"I am…sorry I have not fulfilled your expectations of this relationship at this time," Spock finally said, almost whispering.

"No, no, Spock, don't say that." Uhura rushed forward and took him in her arms. "You've been nothing but great…Spock, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have…Spock." He slowly wrapped his arms around hers and held her.

"There is no need to apologize for expressing your feelings. Doing so is an important part of any relationship.

"Spock, I love you." She breathed it into his neck.

"I love you too." Spock released Uhura and started walking back towards her door, pausing before he left. "I will consider what you have told me today."

"Spock, don't worry about it-."

"Nyota, if it is a concern to you, then it must be to me also. I will see you on the bridge." Spock nodded a quick goodbye and walked out, leaving Uhura to sit on her bed, head in her hands, and let her emotions wash over her in one big, confusing, aching torrent.


	4. Chapter 4

"Congratulations, Chekov, you're now official and ready-to-be-wed," Jim said, smiling at Chekov as he clapped a hand on his shoulder. The ensign turned to beam up at him as the captain took a seat. Uhura, Spock, and Bones were at the table as well, and all smiled—with the exception of the ever blank-faced Spock—at Jim.

"Thank you, Captain."

Jim reached for the salt shaker on Bones' tray, narrowly dodging a smack on the hand as he replied. "Yep. Just got the paperwork done last night. Sorry it took so long; there's been some other messes to clean up."

"Like that transmission the other day?" Uhura asked, looking up and Jim and giving him an exasperated look, though she was smiling.

"Yeah, like that," Jim commiserated.

"If I _ever_ have to translate anything even remotely close to that level of difficulty ever again, I'm leaving Starfleet."

"You are an extremely skilled linguist, Nyota." Spock nodded at his girlfriend, and she leaned on his arm in acknowledgement of the Vulcan's recognition of her skills.

"Well thanks, Spock."

Bones made a gagging sound from the other end of the table, and Jim and Chekov laughed in unison.

"Hey, shut up, " Uhura said, though she was laughing too.

Jim raised a hand as he tried to quell his giggling. "Oh, oh, wait. Some business," he said, looking around at the table and smiling; they were all in good spirits now. "So Chekov, if you absolutely can't wait—and that's totally understandable, trust me—you can get married on the ship in a few days, we'll have a little ceremony, you guys can kiss, all that good stuff. Or, if you want," -he paused for dramatic effect, causing Uhura to roll her eyes—"We're actually going to be on leave in two weeks, so if you can just handle yourself until then…we could cook up a little wedding there if you want something a little more—I don't know, what's the word I'm looking for? Traditional?"

"_Romantic_," Uhura offered, patting Jim's hand sarcastically. "A starship is a little lacking in wedding aesthetics, don't you think?" She looking gently at Chekov. "But it's your choice; if you want to get married here, no one's going to stop you." She chuckled gently.

"I…I don't know, Captain." Chekov looked a little shy under the watch of the whole table. "Maybe…maybe I think about it, and tell you tomorrow? I have to talk to Maddy about it of course too."

"Of course, Chekov, that's fine." Jim nodded at the boy. "Just let me know; we'll be happy to do whatever."

"Also, remind your girlfriend to come get her birth-control pills from me; I'm not dealing with any unwanted pregnancies on this ship. I'm a doctor, not a midwife."

Everyone turned to stare at Bones, and all at once Uhura, Chekov, and Jim replied respectively,

"Really—not at the table, Leonard, really-."

"Uhm, ok…"

"Isn't that the same thing?"

Bones sighed and stood up to leave, looking at the table in frustration. "If Jim can get his business done at the dinner table, why can't I?"


	5. Chapter 5

They were on leave. And it was happening.

"Here, Chekov—you alright? You ready?" Jim raised his eyebrows and smiled at the young ensign before him, who was fidgeting in his formal Starfleet uniform but beaming nonetheless.

"I—I'm nervous, Captain-."

"As expected."

"—but I am excited, too." He smiled again.

"Of course you are, Chekov." Jim grinned at the boy. "I'm happy for you."

Chekov became straight-faced suddenly and looked down. "Captain…may I ask-?"

"Yeah, yeah, of course-"

"…why…why have you not been married, sir? You…you are not a stranger to women, if I may say so."

Jim laughed, but it was a tired laugh, and he looked at the wall past the ensign's head. "I…I don't know, Chekov." He tried to think of an answer, and he felt like he had many, but none of them felt right. "I don't know-."

"You ready?" Bones stuck his head through a door. "The girl's ready, and everyone that's going to be here is here."

Jim looked at Chekov in question, and the boy nodded. "Yes, sir, I am."

"Good." The doctor stepped in and clapped the boy's shoulder quickly. "Congratulations, kid."

"Thank you."

"Well, get yourself out there." Chekov looked once more at Kirk, who nodded and grinned, before plastering a smile across his own face and walking out the door, held open by McCoy. The two older men followed him out, trying to look pleasant but also unconsciously smiling; they were fond of the young helmsman. Once they had made the short journey down an aisle between a few folding chairs set up for the crew who had chosen to attend, they stood at the side of a member of the crew who had volunteered his previous experience as a preacher for the occasion and waited for Maddy.

She emerged only a moment later, followed by Uhura and another woman from the bridge (whom Kirk, if he was being honest, really didn't know the name of). She was wearing a dress, much to the surprise of the men up front. They had been expecting a formal uniform on Maddy as well, unaware that most women on board had brought a few casual outfits with them on their journey, as opposed to most of the men, who had barely made it on the ship with toothbrushes and combs. It was a blue dress that came down to just above her knees, and her wildly curly brown hair had been expertly pinned up by Uhura. Another woman had found a small bouquet of flowers on the planet just a few minutes prior to the ceremony, and Maddy held those gently in front of her. And she looked _beautiful. _

She beamed at Chekov as she made the short walk up the aisle, and he returned the expression. Taking her place on the other side of the makeshift priest, with Uhura and the other woman behind her, the ceremony began.

It only lasted about fifteen minutes in all, but that was plenty of time to exchange the simple vows and rings, and was actually preferable to a longer ceremony, at least to Kirk and most likely to the majority of the rest of the crew members in attendance. Curiously enough, Spock had offered to purchase the rings once the ship was planetside, as Chekov and Maddy were more intent on getting ready for the wedding themselves and were somewhat impartial to the appearance of the rings. The crew on the bridge were a little skeptical at the offer at first, given that Spock was, for one, a man, and not at all generally interested in the finer points of jewelry as well, but on his return, they were all pleasantly surprised—and proud, in the case of Uhura—to find that not only did the rings fit perfectly and not cost a fortune, but were also rather nice to look at.

As the young couple slid their respective rings on an were pronounced man and wife, the small crown clapped and cheered. They kissed, and Kirk and Uhura, most noticeably, looked on with affection at the blushing and grinning ensigns.

"Congratulations, Chekov." Kirk shook hands with the boy. "I am so happy for you."

"Thank you, Captain." Chekov nodded, his hand slipping into Maddy's.

"So, you've got arrangements for the week and all that, somewhere to stay?"

"Yes, Captain. Thank you again."

"No problem, Chekov." Kirk smiled. "Now get on out of here, go have some fun before you get back to work on the ship." Maddy and Chekov both grinned.

"Thank you, Captain," the girl added in.

"Yeah, of course…you've got yourself a great guy there, ensign."

"I agree." She smiled at him again before bidding her goodbyes to a few crew members and then leaving with her new husband. Kirk looked over to see Uhura looking fondly after them, Spock just behind her and seeming thoughtful—not overtly, as usual, but Kirk spent so much time around the commander that expressions that had all blurred together in prior years now made sense to the captain.

"Captain!" Kirk turned to see Scotty folding up chairs with Bones, and he joined in the work.

"Yeah, Scotty?"

"Think we could write 'just married' on the back of the ship?" Kirk smirked at the mischievous glint in his engineer's eyes.

"I'd like to see you try."


	6. Chapter 6

Kirk laughed and took another drink from his glass. He and the rest of his friends that were off shift were sitting around a table in the mess hall, eating and telling embarrassing stories about themselves (which they never seemed to have a shortage of, curiously enough). Chekov had just finished his turn, and Uhura was about to step up to the plate when Bones said, "Well, would you look who it is," affectionately. Kirk turned to see Spock approaching, clutching something in his hand. The half-Vulcan almost managed a fraction of a smile in response to Bones' greeting.

"Hello." He addressed the table first, then placed a hand gently on Uhura's shoulder. "Hello Nyota."

Uhura cradled the man's hand. "Hey, you."

"Nyota, I-." Before Spock could continued, alarms suddenly began blaring.

"What's that?" Kirk was out of his seat in a second, his blood cold and his brain going into overdrive.

"I'm looking, I'm looking," responded Uhura as she pulled out her PADD. "Major malfunction in the ship." She looked up at Kirk. "It's an emergency." Without another word, the whole table jumped up and scrambled hurriedly towards the bridge, with the exception of Bones.

No one noticed the tiny velvet box than Spock had dropped to the floor in his haste.

"Sulu, what's going on?" shouted Kirk, taking a flying bound into his captain's chair to start punching buttons on the arms.

"Airlock malfunction, sir."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning it's going to open in under a minute, and if that happens during warp, we're going to sustain some major damage. It would be dangerous enough if we weren't traveling so fast, Captain."

"Where's the malfunction?"

"Near engineering centers, Captain."

"Have you begun evacuations of the area?"

"I have done so, Captain," offered Chekov. "Mr. Sulu has been busy-."

"Getting the ship to drop out of warp in under sixty seconds without major damage, without any prior warning," Sulu tensely finished for the ensign, rapidly working away at his controls. "Sir," he added, as an afterthought.

"And?" Kirk was gripping his chair harshly, now. "What-?"

Suddenly the whole ship rocked violently to the side, and then jerked to a halt moments later. "What was that?" Kirk barked out, really to anybody who could answer.

"The airlock opened during warp, sir," answered Chekov, who was now working away as quickly as Sulu was. "Just moments shy of us dropping out of warp."

"Captain, I can't get the ship to automatically seal off the open section of the ship." Sulu threw the information over his shoulder.

"Ship sustaining major damage from-."

"Evacuation of damaged areas in effect-."

Kirk couldn't make sense of the information flying around him. "Sulu, what is happening?"

"Captain, I can't get the ship to seal off. The same malfunction that caused the airlock to open is affecting the controls as well."

"You mean to tell me we're just standing up here with a hole in the middle of my ship while people are being sucked out into space? _My crew_ is dying?"

"Captain, we're doing all that we can-."

"Can we reprogram something? Anything."

"Captain, I may be able to provide some assistance." Spock stepped up quickly to the captain.

"Spock, anything, just get it fixed, and fast." Kirk was almost shaking in dread and anticipation. He hated to stand by helpless while his crew was in danger. He _hated_ it. Spock flew over to Sulu's side and began typing furiously into the computer. In half a minute he stepped back.

"Functions should be at normal levels now, Captain."

Kirk didn't hesitate after Spock's report. "Seal it off, Sulu. _Now_."

"Yes, sir." Sulu made a few deliberate movements towards the computer and then turned around to face Kirk. "Damaged area of the ship sealed off and ready to be repaired, Captain."

"You heard him, guys," Kirk said to the bridge. "Initiate repairs to the ship—alert medical of the situation, I'm sure there's at least a few injuries…"

The next hour was a blur of commands, repairs, and headaches building one upon the other for Kirk. Finally, a little past 1800 hours, things were finally settled enough that he, along with the rest of the bridge, could breathe. It hadn't been their Alpha shift when the alarms had gone off, but since they had all replaced the Beta crew on the bridge and their shift was scheduled to begin again anyway, Kirk suggested that they all stay on to make sure things went well. Everyone had readily agreed.

Trying to calm his ragged nerves, Kirk took a few deep breaths and relaxed his shoulders, settling into his chair. A moment later, Chekov turned around to face his captain with a tense and expectant face.

"Captain?"

"Yeah, Chekov?" Kirk said behind the hand over his face.

"I know…this is a personal request, but…maybe…sir, may I see to the well being on Anya? She was working in the area of the ship which was damaged before the alarms went off."

Suddenly Kirk was sitting bolt upright. He had a fatherly attachment to this ensign, and he wasn't about to let the boy down, let alone deny the new husband the opportunity to even see if his wife was alive, for goodness sake. "Of course, Chekov. What's her maiden name?"

"Bennington, sir."

"Computer, locate Madeline Bennington Chekov," Kirk commanded.

The rest of the crew on the bridge had heard the exchange between Kirk and Chekov, and were all silently awaiting an answer from the computer.

"Crew member not currently aboard the ship, Captain Kirk."

Kirk felt his breathe seize in his chest. This had to be a mistake. "Computer, locate Madeline Chekov." He tried another name, with the same response. Again and again, he repeated the name and its variations, to no avail.

"Crew member not currently aboard the ship, Captain Kirk." The final reply from the computer seemed to deliver a blow to every person on the bridge.

"Oh my…Chekov." Kirk looked slowing to the young ensign. Uhura stood behind him, her hand over her mouth and tears spilling over from her eyes.

"Captain?" The young man could barely choke out the word.

"Do…I…" Kirk was at a complete loss for words. Finally something came to mind, though it didn't seem to be of much help. "I…I'm so sorry, Pav." The young navigator didn't move; he just continued to stare straight ahead. Kirk gulped. "Why don't you take off? Take a break…" Kirk could barely make his mouth form the words. This wasn't even his young wife that had died, and he could feel a hole forming in his heart already; he couldn't imagine what Chekov was going through, then.

"I will finish my shift, Captain, like the rest." He turned back towards his work panel.

"No, Chekov, you should-."

"Captain, with all due respect, I will stay on the bridge to finish my shift." Chekov's forcibly strong words left the bridge on silence. Kirk wanted more than anything to force Chekov off the bridge and let him grieve in private, but he knew better than to push him while he was already on the edge.

"Very well then, ensign." The entire bridge was frozen, until Kirk could finally make a sound again. "As you were, everybody." It took a few seconds for everyone to make an actual movement, but Kirk couldn't bark at them to move. All he could do was sit at his chair and try to fight off the dark could of pain for the ensign that was enveloping him.


End file.
